Vice President of Development
Kristina Lederer
Over the last fifteen years, Kristina Lederer has served in leadership roles to help create impactful organizational growth for domestic and international nonprofits. Most recently, Kristina served as the Director of Development of Kakenya’s Dream, a nonprofit organization that empowers girls from severely underserved communities in rural Kenya through educational, health, and leadership initiatives and combats harmful traditional practices such as female genital mutilation and early marriage. In her role, she developed and implemented the organization’s annual fundraising strategy, established a donor giving program and corresponding donor stewardship plan to maintain a strong retention rate year-after-year, and managed a pipeline of institutional funders and prospects to increase organizational sustainability.
Prior to Kakenya’s Dream, she served as the Executive Director of WildlifeDirect and the Director of Development of Advancing Girls’ Education in Africa. Having begun her career as a middle school teacher, Kristina transitioned to nonprofit development at the National Kidney Foundation, eventually living in Uganda to focus on fundraising and program development to improve children’s access to education. Kristina currently serves as a Board Member for 200 Orphanages Worldwide and has consulted with domestic nonprofits across a range of missions.
Kristina is excited to draw from her own experience as an adoptee to build upon The Cradle’s impressive foundation and help deepen the impact in the community. Originally from Maryland, Kristina moved to Chicago in 2019 where she enjoys volunteering with Urban Rivers, urban hikes with her dog, and sharing her passion for travel and the outdoors with her husband and 8-month-old son.
Vice President of Adoption & Family Support
Pamela C. Tancredi, LCSW
Pam Tancredi has an over 25-year career in child welfare. She earned her Master’s degree from the School of Social Service Administration at the University of Chicago. Prior to joining The Cradle in 2000, Pam worked with children and adolescents in residential treatment and independent living settings. At The Cradle Pam has held several roles over the years, including Birth Parent Counselor, Supervisor of Birth Parent Services, Helpline Coordinator and Co-Director of Adoption & Family Support. She began her current role in October 2023, overseeing the quality and integrity of the services delivered to clients at The Cradle.